Sam Kleindorf (US Army)
Sam Kleindorf
US Army, 187th Airborne Ranger-Sergeant
Sam was 19 when he joined the army to train as a Ranger. Draftees serve two years, but since Sam volunteered, his term was three years. Four- hundred men started the program, but only 100 men completed to become Airborne Rangers—a special, elite unit of the army.
There were no Airborne Rangers in WWII; Rangers were created for the Korean War. Their mission was to patrol, destroy, attack and ambush the Communist Chinese and the North Korean People’s Army. Men were trained at Fort Benning, Georgia. Sam trained for three weeks and made five jumps to get his wings. He was then sent to Camp Carlson, Colorado, for four more months of training.
Sam Kleindorf , 19 years old
At first, they practiced jumping from various heights at the training camp. As the distance of jumping off grew higher and higher, some men quit. During an actual jump from a plane, 16 men are positioned on each side of the fuselage, and when the time came, all had to jump quickly in order to land in the same area. Thirty-two men had to jump in a total of 7.5 seconds.
Including the jumps from training school and from Korea, Sam made 26 total jumps, which earned him a star on wings.
In late 1950, Sam was sent to Korea from Seattle by ship, which held about 30,000 men. The Ranger Company captain was Charles E Spragins. Sam reconnected with Captain Spragins years later, in 1977, at a reunion that Sam organized in New Orleans.
Sam in Japan 1951
It took thee weeks on the ship to reach Japan, where they docked in Yokohama. Sam joined the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. Then, only 142 Airborne Rangers, including Sam, were transferred to Hokkaido, Japan. From Hokkaido, they were sent to the US Army Base Camp Chikamauga, Beppu, in the Southern end of Japan, which was their home base.
The 187th Airborne were already fighting in Korea before Sam arrived. They fought in Sukcheon and Suncheon, North Korea, and also in Munsan, just south of the 38th Parallel. Sam landed in Korea after those battles, and was stationed in Korea and Japan, full three years of the war, 1950- 1953. He was airlifted from Japan to Daegu Air Force Base, [the U.N. stronghold] in South Korea where he made his first jump. Many battles were fought. He particularly remembers hearing the Communist Chinese soldiers whistling, that’s how close they were. Luckily Sam was not wounded.
Sam took part in a rescue operation during the Geoje Prison Camp Uprising. Geoje Camp was located on an island on the southeastern end of Korea. About 170,000 communist soldiers were imprisoned there. On May 7, 1952, there was a riot and Brigadier-General Francis Dodd, who was the camp commandant, was captured by the prisoners and held for the next four days. The 187th Regimental Combat team, of which Sam’s unit was a part, were called in to take control of the camp. Many POW’s were killed and injured, while one US soldier died and 13 were wounded. This ended the uprising. Sam has vivid memory of this incident.
In Louisiana, there are only two Airborne Rangers, Dick Hyatt from Lake Charles, and Sam. Dick Hyatt was wounded in Geoje Prison camp and received a purple heart. Sam organized a Ranger reunion in 1977 in New Orleans, and Dick Hyatt attended, along with another 70-plus Rangers and families from all over the United States. Dick still lives in Lake Charles, and he and Sam remain in touch.
There were 142 men in Sam’s Airborne Ranger unit, but only one, Sam, is the survivor as of Sept 2020.
Back to the States in 1953, Sam worked for Ray Peacock and Al Copland at Landmark hotel where he was in charge of different events at the hotel. There were many boxing matches including one with Evander Holyfield. Late New Orleans Sheriff, Harry Lee, loved boxing and came many times with his deputy.
Sam’s wife’s brother was Samuel Robertson, who was killed in the Korean War. He was 17 years old.
Sam points to his brother in-law at the Korean War Memorial in Metairie, LA
Sam in front of the Harry Lee statue, 2017
Interviewed by Sun Kim on June 23 & 27, 2017